Date:2000-05-06
Author:Tim J Cole, Mary C Bellizzi, Katherine M Flegal, William H Dietz
Pages:6
Summary:This study aims to develop an internationally acceptable definition of child overweight and obesity by establishing age and sex-specific cut-off points based on body mass index (BMI). The research involved an international survey of six large, nationally representative cross-sectional growth studies from Brazil, Great Britain, Hong Kong, the Netherlands, Singapore, and the United States. A total of 97,876 males and 94,851 females aged from birth to 25 years were included. The main outcome measure was BMI, which was calculated as weight divided by height squared.
The study constructed centile curves for BMI in each dataset, ensuring that at age 18, these curves passed through the widely used adult cut-off points of 25 and 30 kg/m² for overweight and obesity, respectively. These curves were then averaged to derive age and sex-specific cut-off points for children aged 2-18 years. The resulting cut-off points are less arbitrary and more internationally based than current alternatives, providing a basis for internationally comparable prevalence rates of overweight and obesity in children.
The study concludes that the proposed cut-off points should help in monitoring trends in child obesity worldwide, as they are based on a pooled international dataset and linked to widely accepted adult obesity cut-off points. The cut-off points are recommended for use in international comparisons of prevalence rates of overweight and obesity in children.